Over 270 people, including women and children, have been killed, and more than 1,000 wounded, as Israel launched its deadliest airstrikes on Lebanon on Monday. The strikes come in the wake of sabotage attacks in Lebanon, where thousands of beepers and radio devices exploded, with Lebanon accusing Israel of being behind the assault, according to reports by AP.
Israel’s military has claimed responsibility for targeting over 300 Hezbollah sites, with an intense phase of 150 airstrikes occurring within just one hour between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. Monday. The strikes marked the worst escalation of violence in nearly a year of cross-border clashes between Hezbollah and Israel. The Lebanese health ministry confirmed that Israeli airstrikes in the south and east of the country had killed 274 people and injured more than 1,024.
Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Naim Kassem, declared that the group is now engaged in an “open-ended battle” with Israel. His remarks came shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of attacks on Hezbollah “in ways they could not have imagined.”
On Monday, Israeli warplanes targeted several southern Lebanese towns for the first time since the conflict erupted on October 7, when Israel launched its offensive on the Gaza Strip. Lebanon’s health ministry reported that Israeli strikes on these southern towns had killed 182 people and injured 727 others, with the casualties including children, women, and paramedics.
